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Lotus bows out of Paris Motor Show

The plan put forth by former Lotus CEO Dany Bahar was to explode the British brand into the high-dollar sports car segment and directly challenge its marquee names. The first explosion came with the surprise introduction of five concepts at the 2010 Paris Motor Show. What has continued to surprise, though, is that the explosions haven't stopped: parent company Proton has had troubles leading to a reworking of its Formula One involvement, its IndyCar effort has had a rough ride, Proton's sale to Malaysian conglomerate DRB Hicom led to a production stoppage, and while the company was reassured that it wouldn't be sold, Bahar was shown the door - along with four of those Paris concepts, as far as we can tell. Yet the company is still making highly regarded cars and going racing.
So it shouldn't be all that surprising that, according to a report in Car and Driver, Lotus won't be attending this year's Paris Motor Show at all. Lotus didn't have much to show off at the Geneva Motor Show or the New York Show as all development was halted for two months, and the new corporate owner and new CEO installed by that owner are still working through the details of its niche English property. We will hope this is nothing more than a step in the reorganization, and look forward to seeing the Hethel firm again in Los Angeles or Detroit.

Lotus will kill Elise, Exige and Evora to make room for the new Type 131

Lotus ended years of speculation by announcing it will begin rejuvenating its range when it releases a new model in 2021. Known as the Type 131 internally, its arrival will mark the end of the Elise, the Exige and the Evora. Although the three aforementioned models are showing their age, putting them out to pasture at about the same time is a surprising move because they're currently the only cars in the company's lineup. Saying that the Type 131 will have big shoes to fill is an understatement; it will blaze the path that a full family of new cars will follow. Official details about the 131 are few and far between, but an earlier report sketches the outline of a driver-friendly sports car powered by a mid-mounted engine. While it won't stray far from the lightness and the nimbleness that Lotus is famous for, it will be equipped with more tech than even the Evora, which offers a more comprehensive list of features than the track-inspired Exige and the back-to-the-basics Elise. Insiders have claimed that the 131 will be built on a new modular platform, and that it will not use any kind of electrification. Lotus released an image that shows the Evija (an electric, 2,000-horsepower halo car strictly limited to 130 units globally) next to three enigmatic cars hidden by a cover; one is presumably the 131. Another might be the battery-powered model that it's developing jointly with Renault-owned Alpine. As for the third, your guess is as good as ours. We know that the British firm is developing a Volvo-based SUV, but it's not pictured in the lineup. News of a new Lotus model will bring joy to enthusiasts and economists alike. The company is investing over 100 million British pounds (about $136 million) into its Hethel, England, facility, and it will hire about 250 employees to bring the 131 to the market. Most of the recruits will work in engineering and manufacturing. Lotus noted that it hopes to start building prototypes of the Type 131 — an internal designation that will likely not appear on the production model — in 2021. We don't know if deliveries will also begin this year, or if they are scheduled to start a little later. Regardless, it will be worth the wait. Lotus told Autoblog that all of its future cars will be engineered for global markets, and that its intention is to sell the Type 131 in North America. Related video:

Lotus could be sold to Chinese automaker Geely

Two things are constant throughout the history of Lotus Cars: amazing vehicles, and financial struggles. Frequent changes in both ownership and leadership have left the company's future up in the air. And while the new management has improved quality and set a new product plan in place, its seems that Lotus could have a new parent company soon. Despite comments to the contrary, Chinese automaker Geely is rumored to be interested in acquiring Lotus Cars. The British automaker has been owned by Proton since 1996, but after Proton was sold to DRB-Hicom in 2012 investors suggested selling off Lotus. The Star Online reports that PSA in France is rumored to be looking at purchasing Proton cars from DRB-Hicom. In turn, Geely, the parent company of Volvo, is interested in purchasing Lotus from Proton. The report states that Geely has no interest in mass-market vehicles from Proton, while crossover-focus PSA, owner of Peugeot and Citroen, has no interest in a sports car manufacturer like Lotus. China has been encouraging its native automakers to purchase and acquire technology it lacks. Buying Lotus looks like it would benefit both companies. Lotus needs an influx of cash while Geely, looking to compete further on the global stage, would gain a great deal of technical and engineering knowledge from Lotus. Geely's stewardship of Volvo has been mostly hands-off, while giving the Swedish company enough money to invest in new platforms and technologies. If the same were to happen to Lotus, Colin Chapman's company could have its best years ahead of it. Related Video: News Source: The Star Online via Car BuzzImage Credit: Getty Rumormill Lotus Volvo Citroen Peugeot Lightweight Vehicles Performance Supercars Geely